Andal (community development block)

the Tamil saint

Andal (also spelled Ondal) is a community development block that forms an administrative division in Durgapur subdivision of Paschim Bardhaman district in the Indian state of West Bengal.

Andal is located at
Andal CD Block is part of the Ajay Damodar Barakar tract. This area is sort of an extension of the Chota Nagpur Plateau. It is a rocky undulating area with laterite soil, with the Ajay on the north, the Damodar on the south and the Barakar on the west. For ages the area was heavily forested and infested with plunderers and marauders. The discovery of coal, in the eighteenth century, led to industrialisation of the area and most of the forests have been cleared. Andal CD Block is bounded by Pandabeswar CD Block on the north, Faridpur Durgapur CD Block on the east, Barjora CD Block, in Bankura district, on the south and Raniganj CD Block on the west. Andal CD Block has an area of 84.87 km2. It has 1 panchayat samity, 8 gram panchayats, 146 gram sansads (village councils), 14 mouzas and 12 inhabited villages. Andal, Pandabeswar and Durgapur police stations serve this block. Headquarters of this CD Block is at Andal. Singaran, a small stream about 35 km long has its origin near Ikra in the Jamuria area, flows past Topsi and Andal and joins the Damodar near Waria. Gram panchayats of the Andal block, or panchayat samiti, are: Andal, Dakshin Khanda, Kajora, Khandra, Madanpur, Ramprosadpur, Srirampur and Ukhra.

As per poverty estimates obtained from household survey for families living below poverty line in 2005, rural poverty in Andal CD Block was 18.35%.

In Andal CD Block in 2011, amongst the class of total workers, cultivators numbered 1,296 and formed 2.19% of the total workers, agricultural labourers numbered 2,026 and formed 3.43%, household industry workers numbered 1,507 and formed 2.55% and other workers numbered 54,302 and formed 91.83%. Total workers numbered 59,131 and formed 31.64% of the total population, and non workers numbered 127,784 and formed 68.36% of the population. The coalmines are spread across the Andal, Pandaveswar, Raniganj, Jamuria, Barabani and Salanpur region, including municipal areas. Livelihood in this region is coal centred. The area does not produce much of agricultural products. Overall work participation rate, and female work participation rate, in the mining area are low. Interestingly the work participation rate in the predominantly agricultural rural areas of erstwhile Bardhaman district is higher than in the predominantly urbanised mining area. Human development in the mining area does not at all look good. However, in the composite livelihood index the mining area performs much better than the non mining areas of erstwhile Bardhaman district. The decadal (1991 2001) change in composition of workers shows the growing pressure of population growth, as well as of migrants from adjacent Jharkhand. Note: In the census records a person is considered a cultivator, if the person is engaged in cultivation/ supervision of land owned by self/government/institution. When a person who works on another person's land for wages in cash or kind or share, is regarded as an agricultural labourer. Household industry is defined as an industry conducted by one or more members of the family within the household or village, and one that does not qualify for registration as a factory under the Factories Act. Other workers are persons engaged in some economic activity other than cultivators, agricultural labourers and household workers. It includes factory, mining, plantation, transport and office workers, those engaged in business and commerce, teachers, entertainment artistes and so on.

All 14 or 100% of mouzas in Andal CD Block were electrified by 31 March 2014. All 14 mouzas in Andal CD Block had drinking water facilities in 2013 14. There were 14 fertiliser depots, 8 seed stores and 55 fair price shops in the CD Block. Siduli opencast project in Kenda Area of Eastern Coalfields has a mineable reserve of 9.70 million tonnes. Following land reforms land ownership pattern has undergone transformation. In 2013 14, persons engaged in agriculture in Andal CD Block could be classified as follows: bargadars 17.10%, patta (document) holders 38.31%, small farmers (possessing land between 1 and 2 hectares) 1.47%, marginal farmers (possessing land up to 1 hectare) 11.83% and agricultural labourers 31.29%. In 2013 14, Andal CD Block produced 3,060 tonnes of Aman paddy, the main winter crop, from 1,196 hectares and 7 tonnes of wheat from 5 hectares. It also produced pulses and oilseeds. The Andal Sainthia branch line originates from Andal. NH 19 (old numbering NH 2)/ Grand Trunk Road passes through this CD Block. Kazi Nazrul Islam Airport is a domestic airport at Andal. The airport has been built over 650 acres and was officially inaugurated in 2013. It is 15 km from Durgapur's City Centre and 25 km from Asasol's city bus terminus.

In 2013 14, Andal CD Block had 61 primary schools with 9,424 students, 8 middle schools with 526 students, 9 high school with 6,350 students and 11 higher secondary schools with 13,804 students. Andal CD Block had 1 general college with 1,624 students, 3 technical/ professional institutions with 420 students, 293 institutions for special and non formal education with 11,750 students

In 2014, Andal CD Block had 1 block primary health centre, 2 primary health centres, 3 central government/ PSU medical centres and 6 private nursing homes with total 274 beds and 40 doctors (excluding private bodies). It had 47 family welfare sub centres. 7,937 patients were treated indoor and 311,148 patients were treated outdoor in the hospitals, health centres and subcentres of the CD Block. Ondal Railway Hopital at Andal, with 50 beds, FCI Hospital at Andal, with 50 beds and ECL Bankola Area Hospital at Khandra, with 50 beds are functional within the block area.